Retrograde - Chapter 3
by deannafstr
Summary: Continuation...


Chapter 3

Nora sat with the car idling. Will looked over at Nora, closing the vent blasting heat on him. "I'm sorry you're going through this, Nora."

"I'm fine. I'm more intrigued than annoyed." What really riddled her; was how the hell Riley became an agent. When he was younger, he did drugs, and even sold them. She didn't think agents could get into Quantico with a rap sheet like Riley had. She wanted to ask Will if he recognized Riley, but he beat her to it.

"That guy- agent, I mean, Colson…"

Nora stopped Will from continuing, "He was your sister's ex."

Will turned, facing Nora, "His father is the one who killed Jen, right?"

Nora nodded once. She watched as Will sat back in his seat, rubbing his temple. "He wasn't much of a college student; sort of a bad influence on Jen, if I remember correctly."

"It was mostly after Jen was killed. After his father killed Jen, he started to drink and do…sold drugs again." Nora placed her hand on Will's shoulder. It felt good to be on the same page, talking. "I'm thinking we should both talk to Bo. Express our concerns about Riley…"

"No. Bo seems like he's stuck in between the FEDs and me. Actually, I was hoping to stop by the hospital; do you mind taking me?2"

Nora half-heard Will; she was lost in her own speculation as to why Bo was so distant. She squeezed Will's hand in a panic. All she picked up was _hospital_. "Are you okay?"

Will's head dropped, as he spoke. "I'm fine. I just want to check something there." He leaned up against the passenger door. She could tell this – her panic – was a typical reaction he'd dealt with before; something he wasn't comfortable with.

"Okay. Sure. I'm sorry," Nora softly responded. She put the car in drive, and pulled away from the curb.

…

_While Will and I were on our way to the hospital, a few events began to unfold. Lucky left Riley at the station so he could persuade Bo to visit the bank. Lucky gave Riley the excuse he was taking a quick trip to see his family. Instead, he dropped by his former partner's home._

Lucky stood outside a Llanview walk-up apartment complex. He stared at a window just above snow-filled fire escape. Bright hot pink curtains hung, blocking all life and light from outside.

At the door, Lucky waited. He pulled his cell out of his pocket, checking the time. With a heavy sigh, he knocked softly for the second time. Slowly, the door cracked open.

Amity Miller stared at Lucky half-asleep. Her tangled hair made her wild hot pink and green bunny flannel pajamas look tame. She left the door open, walking back inside. Lucky popped into her apartment and closed the door.

He shifted, trying to center himself in the late eighties neon room. It attacked his senses making him flinch no matter where his eyes followed Amity.

"How did you find me?"

Lucky sat down; the once neon yellow couch was now pale. "The ghost case brought me here, Ames!"

Amity's frizzed hair bounced as she stopped in her tracks. She grinned like a doll from bad a horror flick, "And so now you know I was onto something, and you want it- the intel? Unbelievable."

Lucky looked away. He knew that Ami was lethal even in her bunny onesie; she had a black belt in Taekwondo and could bring any soul to their knees squeezing certain pressure points.

"I'm aware you didn't leave the agency voluntarily."

Amity's hand dove into a box of gluten-free Almond Crackers. Lucky could tell she was waiting for some kind of punch line. She looked at things in conspiracies and only worked for the FBI because she didn't trust the government, or the world. She blamed it on too many X-Files episodes; that the writers had to get their stories from somewhere. _Anything is possible_, she would say.

On a daily basis, everything she bought; from clothes to the almond crackers she stuffed her face with, she researched. It made her likable and hated by many; she was too well-informed. It also showed how hard it was to become her faithful sidekick. At the very core of Amity, she was a loner.

Lucky leaned forward, "Look, Ames, I just wondered if it's the Bureau who started this investigation, or another Agency? I need the history."

"Why now?"

Lucky shook his head. Her reply was nonchalant and sarcastic. He wondered if she completely detached from being an agent, and only focused on fighting GMO products. He heaved a breath, "Will. Will Rappapport is in Llanview. His mother…"

Amity cut him off, "Jesus, Lawrence, tell me something else. I read that blurb in the newspaper."

Lucky's eyes glazed over. It had been two years since he took on the identity of a doppelganger-field agent slash Marine injured in Afghanistan. He met with the family, even visited the hospitalized soldier; they all approved. For six weeks, he picked up all of Agent Lawrence Gray's nauseating and ritualistic habits. If there was a way that every alcoholic or drug addict could drop their dependencies for a health conscious lifestyle, this could very well be a new rehab trend.

Still, the name threw him every now and then. His real name, along with the agency he worked for was now a secret. It was getting harder as the years began to collect; he hadn't seen or communicated with his family in Port Charles since reporting to Amity's desk. They all believed he was in Africa; and the CIA made sure it appeared that way. If he did see them, he'd throw away the last two years.

Amity threw a pillow, snapping him from his stare. "You want the history? Give me a mile, and I'll give you an inch."

"We got a picture of the ghost visiting Lindsay in prison."

"Uh ah. No way. He wouldn't do that."

"Maybe he's desperate?"

"Nope!"

"Who in the Bureau would be reckless enough to photo-shop a meeting between Lindsay and this guy?"

It was his mission to find out who was pulling the strings behind the entire operation to locate the so-called terrorist, and why. Lucky was hand-picked for the case while he was searching for the drug ring his deceased wife got information on; he got closer than the other agents, and somehow it all connected back to the current Rappaport case. He was lost on how it all linked, though.

Amity crumbled the bag inside the box, and closed the flap. "How's Will Rappaport?"

Lucky should have known to start the conversation with Will, not business. Three years ago, Amity investigated him. She posed as his secretary, soon after Will began working from home. However, the Bureau pulled her from the case, reprimanded her; and forced her to train new field agents when she began looking in another direction. The other route not only remained classified, but the lead that took her off the beaten path.

While he trained with Amity, he heard from other agents that she wasn't just Will's secretary; she was his nurse, a mother, a chauffeur, and his lover. Just as they fell in love, she had to leave. She never said goodbye, or explained who she really was. While Will was in a meeting, she packed her things and left. Even though he and Amity worked for a year and half together, Lucky never confirmed the gossip. The motherly side he heard so much about, for the most part, was elusive.

"He's doing better. You should see him. You both are in the same city now. Isn't that why you've stayed in Llanview? Hoping he'd return under your radar?"

Amity tossed the box of crackers on the bright aquamarine coffee table, "Eh, it's good place to start over after you're canned from the Bureau. Parents are here."

Lucky sat on the edge of the couch, "Well, if you're going to stay bottled up like that, then…" He stood, "I just thought you'd want to help Will."

"Showing up unannounced isn't the best way." She kicked off her bunny slippers. "But, you're obviously not concerned about getting into trouble."

Lucky lowered himself onto the arm of the couch, laughing. "Trouble, huh?" She had a habit of leading to a hint; never gave it freely. He realized how much she reminded him of his father. He wanted to tell her all about him, but, he was Agent Gray with upstanding, straight and narrow parents.

"I get that you're privy to the intel I need, and if you need to keep it to yourself for the ego boost, great!"

Lucky made his way to the door. Just as he reached for the doorknob, the box of almond crackers hit it, barely missing his head. He slowly turned, not knowing what to expect.

"Was your line about helping Will, bait?"

"Something isn't right about all this, Ames."

"Hmmm…you like chicken? I've created a great macadamia gluten-free crusted tender recipe. Even have some of your green tea!"

"Ah! You were expecting me!" That guy Lawrence never missed his 2'o clock tea time, no matter what time zone he was in. Lucky smiled, and kicked off his shoes.

…

On the car ride over, Nora persuaded Will to let her accompany him inside Llanview Hospital. What he did behind closed doors; was confidential, _of course_. But, she made a promise to prod it out of him later.

As they walked down the hall, Will stopped. He looked around, far too curious about his surroundings. She knew he was stalling; Will didn't want her to know who he would visit.

"If you're lost, you can give me a hint; and I'll point you in the right direction."

Will shifted, wrestling with the decision. "If I…look, I may need you to witness something. But, that would mean you can't tell Bo, or anyone else; unless you're under oath."

"What the hell are you going to do?"

"Nothing! Nothing illegal." Will pulled Nora into a corner, speaking lower. "No matter what the results are, I don't want anyone knowing I had a tox screen done."

"Will, if you were drugged that night, the authorities should know."

Will turned serious, "Can I explain later? I hate hospitals. I was hoping to be in and out of here."

"I'm still open to taking that fifty, ya know!"

Will left Nora's side. "I'll take that as a yes."

In the Laboratory, Nora followed Will and the Tech into her back office. She was tiny Asian woman; and her voice matched her stature. "I took your blood to the other place I work." She kneeled down; unlocking what appeared to be her personal locker. When she stood up, the Tech raised a paper up to Will.

Will accepted the page with both hands, bringing it closer to his face. Nora peeked over Will's arm, reading it with him.

"What do you make of it, Doctor?" Nora gave the Tech a double take, and looked back at Will. _Was he pretending to be a physician?_ He didn't correct the Tech, nor did he wink at her to play along.

"I see that amphetamine is listed here, but, when you look at the breakdown…it was false positive, right?"

Nora watched their exchange like two lab professionals hitting their Eureka moment.

"That's why I had it broken down! I remember you saying there weren't any symptoms of feeling drugged."

"I just felt like the climate was dryer, because it is compared to Laguna this time of year. It was actually dryer because I was given an OTC. Pseudoehpedrine."

"Lot's of it, Dr. Rappaport! Do you see the percentage? I ran your Tegretol levels, too?"

Nora interrupted their rhythm, "Pseudo-what? Can I get some layman's terms?"

Will folded the paper in half, pocketing it. "I was given a decongestant. It doesn't interact well with my AED."

"A-E-D?"

"Anti-convulsant medication," the Tech answered. "It was a powerful drug interaction, given the amount."

It clicked for Nora, "Someone tried to kill you?"

Will ignored her, and looked at the lab Tech. "Probably tried to delay me, or something. I was making an important speech at the conference that day!" The Tech's eyes had widened with the same realization. "Thank you for doing this. I owe you."

"No problem! If I take a holiday out in California, I'll be sure to collect!"

Will laughed and nodded, "Okay!" There wasn't much to stand around and chat about; he steered Nora out of the office, through the main laboratory, and out into the hallway.

Nora started to speak, but, Will quieted her. "We'll talk back at the house."

…

Lucky watched Amity dip her gluten-free crusted chicken tender in a honey mustard concoction. He slowly picked up one, smelling it.

"It tastes better than all that breaded preservative packed crap."

"Not dry wood tasty?"

She tilted her head, "You're the health freak! But, live on tea, then!" He had almost forgotten about his piping hot tea cup. "Should I dip it in my tea to soften the cardboard?"

Amity swiped his tenders in a swift ninja motion, putting them on her plate. He grabbed a free one sitting in the dipping sauce, taking a big bite. She sat her chin on her fist, waiting for Lucky's reaction.

"Okay. These taste like the real thing. Give some back."

Amity continued eating, building a wall of condiments in front of her plate. "You know that Will took a job at that BioTech Firm, as a Patent Attorney; and that the owner hand-picked him?"

Lucky sat back sipping his tea like a snobbish Brit. "I was always curious about that. He got his PhD in Biomedical Engineering while he was working there, right."

She mumbled a yes with a mouth full. "I thought it was just a favor hire. His law firm all but decided to drop him, due to the epilepsy. Clients started shying away from him; so, it made sense to stay connected to his firm, but, go where he could work."

Lucky managed to move the ketchup bottle, and slipped a tender off Amity's plate. "Makes sense! I know all about favor hires!" His partner was one. Riley Colson spent a few days in rehab years ago, and then, presto; he was shipped off to a university under a politician's buck. His father pleaded with a New York Senator to fix all the wrong he did to his kid. Riley did the time in college and Quantico, but, picked up more hubris attitude than crime fighting skills.

Amity left the wall opened, "You know this case dates back to the late eighties?"

Lucky looked around the room, "So, you're still in the mode? You're still working, then?"

"What? The apartment is supposed to be a sixties theme. It's psychedelic not supersonic!" She blinked as if she were being entertained by crickets. "Anyway, this case came to me after Lindsay-she was suspected to have manipulated the whole prison break at Statesville."

"I thought Troy MacIver cut the power."

"The whole thing sounded like one big lovers quarrel." Amity seemed frustrated, and rolled her eyes. "The prison break is really insignificant. They went back to prison, nothing more to be done about it. During that time, however, there was piece of intel someone was looking for a biological agent outta Philly. She hurried through the last bit of set up, "The Ghost was spotted near Llanview. Your bosses ran some history on Lindsay and found the FEDs investigated her gallery in Chicago between 1980 and 81. I was put on Will to see if his mother would talk to him."

Lucky leaned forward, crossing his arms. "What happened with Lindsay's gallery?"

Amity got up, picking up the dirty plates. "No one gave you any history?" She cackled as if she was heading to an asylum. "They must have burned my notes, and danced around 'em!" She dropped the dishes into the sink, facing Lucky, "Suspected of selling stolen art, or purchasing it; imported from Argentina. Some agents were following a smuggled microchip out of Argentina with a microbial formulation; for a biological weapon. The Ghost is the guy who the CIA believes manufactured it when he worked for the Biopreparat in the Soviet Union just before the anthrax incident in '79. They think he defected to Argentina and worked for the Junta testing this bio-agent."

Lucky was speechless. He sat back in his chair; it was the first time he was ever placed on any case this huge. This was much bigger than he imagined. "So, Lindsay could have accidentally acquired this microchip? The CIA; they initiated the investigation abroad, or did the FEDs…"

"Lindsay was cleared. She had a newborn-Will at the time, and chalked it up to being too busy. She wasn't sure who she sold the artwork to, or which one the FEDs had their eye on. She apologized to the art community; and it was brushed under the rug. But…while I was working for Will, I was cleaning his bookcases; I found an old art log from the gallery. The amount she purchased it for, and the name of who sold it to her was all there."

Lucky smiled; he could finish the story now, "You traced the name and found the Ghost?"

"No. A former CIA agent. He was willing to meet with me, but, I never got a chance to do so."

Lucky's body sank, "When you found that out, you were taken off the case?"

"This is the first time I'm speaking about it, Lawrence. I never made my superiors aware I was in contact with this guy, Wittman. Our Chief Agent found out somehow I was curious about another angle. Whoever is behind resurrecting this case, I don't think they want to destroy it. I think they want confirmation it exists."

Lucky picked up his plate, walking it over to the sink. He grabbed his wadded paper towel before dumping it into the soapy water. He stared at the suds break and reform. As he fumbled with his napkin, he stuttered, almost too afraid to ask, "What was Will working on at the BioTech firm?"

…

Nora paced while Will changed in his room. He was silent the entire way home, but his mind worked overtime processing what he just learned.

Will popped out in workout clothes, bracing himself on his walking cane. He had earbuds dangling from his neck; and was busy tapping his iPod Nano screen.

Nora gasped, "Whoa! Hold on!"

"I need to clear my head; get the rest of my PT done."

Nora placed her hands on her hips, "No! Our deal was you'd talk when we got home. How did you know to run a tox screen?"

Will sat on the edge of the couch's arm, taking the weight of his leg. She stepped closer to him, towering over him. It was a good tactic; to make her feel like she had some authority over him.

"I've never had a status seizure. They've been thirty seconds to a minute, but, nothing that required multiple AED's to stop."

"So, any idea who would have drugged you, Dr. Rappaport? You are a real doctor, or were you lying…"

"I wasn't lying. I had to improvise when the firm asked me not to take trial cases. I went back to college."

Nora eased her goading. All she could think of how disappointed Will must been. If his father were still alive, Sam would have brought him back home, and taken him on as a partner. She would have, as well. "How could they do that to you?"

"Everyone deserves a speedy trial." He cleared his throat, "As far as who-dun-it; it could be one of two things. Either someone tried to kill me with an OTC, which honestly sounds a bit laughable. Or, someone tried to delay me from meeting with my mom. Maybe to prevent me from meeting her at all; I really don't think I saw her at all."

Nora sat on the opposite arm of the couch, crossing her arms. She threw a string of questions at Will, "Who called 911, then? The Neuro said there was no way you could have. And, why would they not want you meeting with your mother? What did she want you to do?" Will leaned his chin on the walking cane's handle. "I don't know. Hell, maybe it was a Samaritan? A homeless dude who lived in the abandoned warehouse?"

Nora didn't want to ask, but the question slipped the tip of her tongue, "If…if someone tried to kill you, how do you think your mother is?"

Will's crystal green eyes darkened. He stared at Nora for a moment. She could tell he wanted to resort back to the-_you don't really care about my mother_-argument, as he stood. He took a deep breath, "I was really trying not to go there, Nora. I'd like to believe she's okay. That's…that's why I need to go clear my head. Maybe I'll remember something."

"Let me go with you."

"I want to be alone."

Will didn't wait for Nora to answer. She watched him hobble towards the front door.

"Will…you…can't."

He turned back, determined. "I'm not in the mood to hear that phrase, right now. I'd like to take advantage of the fact I'm still able to walk on this earth."

Nora had sensed there was something different about Will when he first woke up in the hospital. He was tired and a bit confused, but, he didn't have a shred of worry in his face. He laughed with the nurses and doctors; and even now, he showed he was fearless in spite of the danger. It wasn't a lack of concern, or throwing caution to the wind; after losing his entire family to senseless tragedies, he wasn't terrified of death. Yet, his inner strength existed solely due to his anger. She could see it there, even when he was calm.

Nora stepped aside, and let him go without suspicion.

As Will passed her, and reached for the doorknob; she embraced him. Nora cupped his face in her hands, "Call me if you need me. You have your cell, right?"

"I got it."

Nora stepped back, as Will opened the door.

"Be careful."

He nodded, "Lock the door."

Nora laughed. It seemed odd, considering he could be endangering himself, stepping outside alone. No matter how angry they got at each other, he always cared and respected her.

…


End file.
